Fortunately the outside temperature was in the low 50’s all evening, because everything in this meal was cooked inside a pretty hot oven.

The more ecocentric part was that all 3 were inside the stove at the same time, cooking at exactly the same temperature.

The steak was delicious, juicy, and of a good modest portion; the potato cultivar potatoes was new to us, and a real treat; the asparagus was, well.., asparagus, especially as it was keeping company with ramps and thyme.

• two 100% grass-fed 6-ounce tri-tip steaks from Greg and Mike at the Sun Fed Beef/Maple Avenue Farms stall in the Union Square Greenmarket, brought to room temperature, dried, seasoned with freshly-ground black pepper, seared on both sides inside a smaller oval enameled cast iron pan, sprinkled with sea salt, then roasted in a 425-450º oven for 6 or 7 minutes, or, advisedly, until just beyond medium-rare with this cut, removed to 2 plates, where they were allowed to rest for a few minutes after a bit of juice from an organic Whole Foods Market lemon had been squeezed over the top, plus some sliced spring garlic from from Norwich Meadows Farm and chopped lovage from Two Guys from Woodbridge, ending with a drizzle of olive oil

• a few ‘pink pearl potatoes’ (10 ounces) from Berried Treasures Farm, halved lengthwise, tossed with a little olive oil, sea salt, freshly-ground black pepper, fresh pineapple sage (salvia elegans) leaves from Stokes Farm, and a small amount of crushed golden/orange home-dried habanada pepper, arranged cut side down on a medium Pampered Chef unglazed ceramic pan, roasted inside the same 425-450º oven for 20-25 minutes, arranged on the plates accompanied by some beautiful micro red mustard from Two Guys from Woodbridge

• eighteen or so fairly thick asparagus spears from John D. Madura Farm, plus the white sections (the green leaves were removed) of 10 or so young ramps from Lucky Dog Organic Farm, a handful of thyme branches from Stokes Farm, a little more than a tablespoon of olive oil, a little sea salt, and a bit of freshly-ground black pepper, all rolled along the surface of a large Pampered Chef unglazed ceramic pan, which was placed at the bottom of the hot oven for about 20 to 25 minutes, with, near the end of that time, the reserved green ramp leaves, roughly-sliced, thrown onto the top and, with a wooden spatula, pushed around the asparagus and ramp bulbs a little before they had quite finished cooking, the vegetables removed to the plates and drizzled with a bit of lemon juice
• the wine was a California (Los Carneros) red, Sin Fronteras Los Primos Red Wine California 2016, from Naked Wines
• the music was the album, ‘Charles Wuorinen: Chamber Music For Violin, Piano And Harpsichord’